On the bank of a river, a sage was sitting on a large rock. A washerman came there to wash clothes, as that rock was the only spot suitable for his daily work.
Seeing the sage sitting there, the washerman thought, “He’ll get up soon. I’ll wait and do my work later.” One hour passed, then two, but the sage did not move.
Politely folding his hands, the washerman requested the sage, “O Holy One, this is where I usually wash clothes. Kindly sit somewhere else so I may complete my task.”
The sage quietly got up and moved a little further away. The washerman then began his work, beating the clothes against the rock. In the process, a few drops of dirty water splashed onto the sage.
Angered, the sage began hurling insults at the washerman. But even that did not calm him down—he grabbed the washerman’s stick and started hitting him with it.
Just like a snake appears calm and soft from the outside, but reveals its true nature when its tail is stepped on—similarly, the sage’s real temperament came out when provoked.
Seeing the sage furious, the washerman thought, “I must have committed some grave mistake.” Folding his hands, he apologized sincerely and said, “Maharaj, please calm down. I am an ignorant man. I’ve been washing dirty clothes for so long that I wasn’t mindful of what I was doing. Please forgive me.”
The washerman finished his work, gathered the clean clothes, and again apologized before leaving.
The sage then noticed that the muddy water that had flowed off the washerman’s rock was being naturally filtered by the soil and merging cleanly into the pure stream of the river.
But his own white clothes were now soaked, humid, and reeking with a foul stench.
Who was the real sage, and who was the washerman? In truth, the washerman was the real saint—calm, composed, and removing the stains of others with equanimity.
The sage realized his mistake and, from that moment on, learned to control his anger. In time, he became a truly great sage.
Moral:
Just as we cannot see our reflection in boiling water, in a state of anger we cannot see what is truly good for us.
Always stay content—what you have is enough.
He who is joyful in heart, possesses everything.